Along with some aesthetic changes at Fiddlehead Restaurant, guests can now look forward to a few changes around the restaurant bar. Fiddlehead will now feature a cocktail menu in addition to their previous beer and wine offerings! That's right, Fiddlehead obtained a three-way liquor license, which allows them to serve spirits!

This license now allows owner, Aaron O’Reilly, to create and serve original cocktails to Fiddlehead customers. O’Reilly was excited to implement the new offerings and ended up creating the cocktail menu himself.

“I have experience and know-how in cocktail making and I wanted to have someone else do it to get it off my plate. In the end, I thought I needed to make it my own,” said O’Reilly.

Originally, someone was brought in to create the menu, but feeling that it didn't quite represent the restaurant, Aaron decided to take matters into his own hands. He dove in with his previous knowledge and created a focus on homemade syrups and infusions to follow with his local theme.

“The concept of the restaurant is to be as local as possible. All the produce comes local, all my meat is local; that's the driving force behind the restaurant so I’m keeping with that,” said O’Reilly. “Making your own syrups and things, you have to take the bull by the horns and do it because no one else is going to have the concept of the restaurant like you are.”

Learning from the experience was also important to O’Reilly, who has learned that inspiration is a great thing, but no one can do the work for you.

“I’ve realized that you can bring in input and be inspired by people, but when it comes to actually creating what you want, you need to do it yourself,” said O’Reilly. “ Plus, it’s fun!”

Along with O’Reilly’s original creations, the restaurant will be serving classic cocktails with a Fiddlehead twist. As always, he’ll focus on local spirits when possible, as he strives to do in every aspect of the restaurant.

“I’m going to focus as much as I can on local spirits, all my beer is local except Miller and Coors. All of my other beer comes from Michigan, Indiana, or Illinois,” said O’Reilly.

These new recipes are just one more way Aaron is working to bring the Fiddlehead mission to life. With some new recipes, and twists on classics, there is sure to be a drink for everyone to love.